Cheap and easy solutions to online marketing issues.

Listen and learn – posting web content your visitors like

A great quote from Mo’ Better Blues, very apropos in the world of website content: “The people don’t come because you…don’t play shit that they like. If you played the shit that they like, then people would come, simple as that.”

In the web world, attention is currency, and what good is the nicest looking website in the world if no one is there to see it?

One key to (hopefully) even out those New vs. Returning stats in Google Analytics is to keep updating your website with fresh and interesting content. Again, this means interesting to your viewers, not what’s necessarily interesting to you.You might wonder, “How will I know what my viewers find interesting?” Again, Google Analytics to the rescue! You can examine the top content (Analytics sidebar under Content > Top Content) to see what people are looking at on your site.

I have been able to raise visits by ensuring that popular topics are revisited. Also, look at your keywords (Analytics sidebar under Traffic Sources > Keywords). These are the words people look up in Google, yahoo or any other search engine that drive them to your site.

At DePaul University, I found that a very popular topic for visitors to the Newsline site was “DePaul football.” DePaul hasn’t had a football team since the Coolidge administration, but that doesn’t mean I can’t find some content related to DePaul football. I could post an article about the history of football at DePaul, or post a vintage photo of the DePaul football team.

In fact, this vintage photo, posted in 2009, is still one of the top hits on the Newsline website.

Your visitors will tell you what they want – are you willing to listen?